


Mystery Inc - Case of the Coolsville Creeper

by Bobbytriesatlife



Series: Mystery Inc 2019 [1]
Category: Scooby Doo - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-05
Updated: 2019-12-16
Packaged: 2021-01-23 19:27:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21325414
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bobbytriesatlife/pseuds/Bobbytriesatlife
Summary: A tragic event on a rainy night brings trouble to Coolsville and sets events into motion that will bring together a group of teens to seek the answers to an unusual mystery.
Relationships: Daphne Blake/Velma Dinkley
Series: Mystery Inc 2019 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1537390
Comments: 9
Kudos: 34





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This is mostly a personal project for Nano! I wanted to take a shot at doing YA writing and I love Scooby Doo.  
Idk how long it will end up being but I hope you all enjoy it!

Mystery Inc.

The Case of the Coolsville Creeper.

Prologue

It was 2 weeks before Halloween in the town of Coolsville. Rain poured down from the dark gray clouds, splashing through leaves in the forest just outside of town. In the middle of the forest was a road that lead in and out of town. Although anyone who lived there could tell you not to drive there at night during the rain. For most, it was because of the numerous potholes that always seemed to appear in a new spot the moment one was filled. For others it was various superstitions and urban legends, tales of wolves and monsters. However Coolsville didn't have a wolf population and according to current known science, monsters do not exist.

Unfortunately for the driver of the blue sedan currently trying his best to make it up the road and into town, he was not aware of these beliefs as he was not from around here. Our driver is a white male, around 50 years old. He wore a black rain jacket which covered his baby blue sweatshirt. His brown slacks appeared to be drenched from just below the knees, down to the edges. His boots are caked in what appears to be mud. In the back of the car sits a frightened Great Dane. The shivering brown dog had a blue collar with a blue and gold tag, engraved with the initials SD. Next to the dog is a sealed plastic bag containing a black folder with no labels or indicators of what could be inside.

As they made their way down the road and through the forest, the driver took a look in his rearview mirror at the frightened pup.  
"Hold on." said the man. "Everything will be okay. Just gotta get into town."  
Having made the mistake of taking his eyes off the road, the driver didn't notice as a large figure shrouded in a silhouette made by the darkness and rain standing in the middle of the road. As soon as his gaze turns to the road and he notices the startling figure, the driver swerves hard. He loses control of the vehicle and panics, quickly twisting the steering wheel in the other direction. However, it's already too late. The car swerves off the road and into the forest. The driver slams the brakes and manages to stop just in front of a tree.

Taking a moment to catch his breath, the driver puts the car into park. He turns around to see if the dog is okay. Though scared and shivering in fear, the dog seems physically fine. The driver lets out a sigh of relief before grabbing an umbrella laying on the floor in the back of the car.

"Wait here, okay?" the man says. He pets the dog on the head and gets out of the car, popping open the umbrella. He walks out to the edge of the forest and looks around for the mysterious figure he saw standing in the road. It's hard to see through the sheets of rain that pelt his umbrella, especially at this time of night. There doesn't seem to be anyone around, so he turns to head back to his car, figuring his mind must be playing tricks on him. Unfortunately this was not the case.

As the driver turned to go back to his car, he felt a large hand grasps his shoulder. He nearly jumped out of his skin as the large hand forced the driver to turn back around. Before the driver stood a tall, broad figure in an ill fitting dark green suit. The man, if it could be called that, stood at about seven feet tall. His suit jacket was tattered and open, revealing an even more tattered purple shirt. The driver shivered and couldn't help himself from looking up towards the large man's face. His skin was a muted grayish green, like the color of an old gravestone left unkempt. His eyes were pale yellow with dark brown irises and big pupils. He had thick eyebrows, colored like dark grass, the matched the small mop of hair on his squared head. 

The driver had a thought to run, but could do nothing but shiver as the man looked down at him. Snarling his teeth as the rain poured down his gnarly visage. 

"Y-you won't find it." said the man, finally getting up the courage to talk. Although his voice was so quiet, one could wonder if the tall man even heard it. "It's already been delivered."

The tall man seems to ignore the driver's words. He looks behind the man to see the car. The driver notices the gruesome man's gaze and plants himself between the man and the forest. He drops his umbrella and tries to ward the man off. As the man begins to walk past the driver and toward the forest, the driver notices a rock sitting on the ground. He sprints for it and almost falls over before picking it up. The tall man slowly walks towards the car when suddenly the driver tosses the rock at the man's back.

"Hey!" he shouts over the continuous downpour. The tall man turns around slowly with an annoyed look on his face, having felt no significant pain from the blow. From the car, the dog watches and whimpers before looking down at the sealed bag beside him. 

The tall man approaches the driver who shivers as he keeps eye contact with the creature, taking a few steps back before tripping backwards onto the ground. The driver puts his hands up in front of his face in fear as the tall man looms over him. The man snarls, raising a pair of clenched fists before bringing their terrible weight down onto the man's head. The deed is done and the rain cleans any stain away before it sets upon the tall man's hands.

Once again the tall man goes toward the car. This time he notices the back door is open. The tall man hurries to the car, but the dog and the package have gone before he gets to the car.

Deep into the forest, the dog runs as far as his legs can take him. The plastic bag is held in his maw. He doesn't stop when he hears the roar of the tall man over the sounds of the pouring rain. He just keeps running into town, forced to leave his now deceased master behind.


	2. Chapter 1 - Coolsville High

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meet the students of Coolsville High as they get ready for Spirit Week. It's 6 days till Halloween and with Monday being a free day our student body can think of it as the calm before the storm when things really get underway.

Chapter 1 - Coolsville High

The next day our story picks up outside of Coolsville High. It's around 9 am. The cars and buses begin to arrive, bringing with them a bevy of students about to start the day. A teal van pulls into a parking space beneath a tree and after being put into park, out jumps and enthusiastic looking young man with his book bag slung over his right shoulder. He's wearing a white long sleeve shirt with a blue vest, jeans and timbs. He smiles to himself before walking up to the school, joining the crowd of students as the make their way through the front doors. He enters into the modestly average sized school and scans the crowd till he spots a particular orange sweater.   
Fred walks over and taps the shoulder of his friend who turns to greet him with a nod and pushing up her glasses.

"Hey Velms, you ready for the party this weekend? I already got my costume together, but it's a surprise." said Fred.

"Eh, I don't feel like going all out this year. I'll probably just be a cat or something." said Velma Dinkley, once again adjusting her glasses. In addition to her black glasses and orange sweater, Velma work a red pleated skirt, black leggings and a pair of red chucks. Instead of a backpack, she had a green satchel, gifted to her by her mom. In addition to her school books, it housed Velma's personal research journal. Something not even Fred was allowed to look at.

The pair made their way to their lockers, located right next to one another. They had been friends since they were toddlers. One of Fred's dads worked with Velma's father. As time went on, the two found out they had similar interests in science. Fred's wheelhouse being physics while Velma had a greater interest in Engineering and chemistry.

The two gathered the things they would need for their first few periods and closed up their lockers before moving to first period.

"It's Halloween! We got like, what 2 or so years till it's not cool for us to dress up? Until we get to college and then it's hip again." said Fred.

"Pretty sure no one says "hip" like that anymore, Jones." said Velma holding back a laugh.

The pair entered Mrs. Fawcett's homeroom and sat next to each other at the middle table like always. Mrs. Fawcett was an english teacher, about 40 though no one ever asked her real age. She sat idly at her desk reading a romance novel as the children sat down. The morning bell rings, startling her a little bit before she makes her announcements to the class.

"Uh, yes! Good morning class." said Mrs. Fawcett, placing down her novel and straightening her posture. "Ahem. Alright then. Morning announcements. With Halloween coming up, you know what that means! ~Spirit Week~! There will be a pep rally later this afternoon. Students will attend depending on their class at that time. In addition, all students will be allowed to dress up each day of the week according to that day's theme."

Mrs. Fawcett reaches into her desk drawer and pulls out a stack of papers, placing them on top of her desk.

"Uh, Ms. Dinkley? If you would be so kind as to hand out the schedule for Spirit week to everyone in class?"

Velma holds in a sigh and nods before walking to Mrs. Fawcett's desk to collect the stack of papers. She always ended up being teacher's pet whether she liked or not. Teachers always seemed to overcompensate when it came to being nice to Velma. She was a unique student with good grades and a seemingly more mature attitude than her fellow students. While she appreciated the kindness given to her, she felt that sort of adoration from teachers attracted the opposite sort of attention from her peers.

She walked around the class placing a sheet on each person's desk. She eventually came to one student's desk in particular and paused for a sec before setting the paper down ever gently.

"Thanks." said Daphne Blake with her usual smile, freckles seeming to glow on her cheeks as her grin widened. 

"No problem." Velma said almost at a whisper. She pushed back a tuft of hair behind her glasses before moving on to the next desk.

After handing out every sheet, she went back to her seat. The next several minutes included Mrs. Fawcett making a few more announcements and telling her students about her morning before the bell signalling every student to move to first period rang.

Fred and Velma gathered their books and proceed to leave the classroom and go to the hall. As they walked, Daphne walked quickly to catch up with them. Her long red hair was tied back into a ponytail that swished like the tassel of a bookmark as she made her way over. She wore a cheerful purple Vee neck sweater with a white button up blouse, pink pants and purple sneakers.

"Hey guys, hold up!" she called as she approached Fred and Velma.

The two stop and turn around to greet her. 

"Yo Daph, what's up?" said Fred.

"Just wanted to let you guys know my parents are letting me have a party at my place. Nothing too big. Just some friends. If you guys are free, you should totally stop by." Daphne told them enthusiastically while handing them some surprisingly well made custom invitations. 

"Heck yeah! I was looking for something to do Halloween night anyway." said Fred excitedly. 

"What about you Velma? You free?" asked Daphne.

"Uh, yeah." said Velma. "I should be. I don't really have anything else to do. Uh, I mean it sounds like fun. I'd love to see you. I mean go. Go to the party."

"Great! I'll see you guys there." said Daphne. I gotta hurry to gym. They're gonna have some of us practice for cheerleading before the pep rally."

Daphne waved and went on her way as Fred and Velma turned to go to their next period.

"Smooth." said Fred jokingly.

"Shut up, Jones." said Velma.

Later in the day, the first group of students gathered in the gymnasium for the pep rally. Velma and Fred sat between a few other students in the middle row of the left side bleachers. Down below, on the gym floor, Principal Parton stood in front of a mic. A few other teachers stood behind her and behind them stood the cheer squad with in the front row.

"Attention students. I'd just like to say that I hope you're all excited about Spirit week as much as I am!" she said, pumping up a fist in enthusiasm. "You should have all received your schedules for this week in Homeroom, if not, one of your teachers should have an extra copy. Other than that, we have a performance for you by our very own cheer squad and very special mascot, the Coolsville High Bobcat!"

As the principal said their name, the school mascot, an anthropomorphic brown bobcat in a teal light blue football uniform with lime green tin came running into the gym. As the mascot started performing, several students clapped at their admittedly impressive gymnastics.

The Bobcat completed their routine and moved out of the way so the cheerleaders could start theirs. Up in the bleachers Velma and Fred watched the performance. Velma seeming a bit more interested in the performance than one would expect. 

"Didn't think Cheerleading was your thing." said Fred, nudging Velma with an elbow."

"Huh? Oh, no. I was just uh thinking to myself. You know." said Velma, having almost jolted out of her seat. 

"Uh huh." said Fred with a smug grin.

As the cheer squad finished their routine, Daphne took a second to gleefully smile and wave in Velma and Fred's direction. Fred nodded and Velma gave a half wave, not exactly sure if Daphne was really looking in her direction.

After the cheer was finished, the rest of the pep rally went by relatively quickly. The principal introduced the current members of the schools sports teams, she discussed upcoming events like a fall dance in November, before finishing out with another overview of spirit week. 

As things closed out, the principal dismissed everyone back to class. The members of the cheer squad and school sports teams headed out to their respective locker rooms to change for class. Daphne walked and talked with a group of fellow cheerleaders, but happened to notice the mascot struggling with his suit.

"Hey, I gotta take care of something. I'll catch up with you guys in a sec." said Daphne.

As the other cheerleaders went into the locker room, Daphne walked over to the mascot and let out a sigh.

"Stuck again?" she said, holding back a laugh.

The person in the Bobcat suit tried to respond, but their voice was too muffled to understand. They pointed to the back of their neck as if to signal something to Daphne. 

"Okay, just turn around." said Daphne. The mascot nodded as best they could and did as they were told. Daphne noticed that part of the mask and jersey got caught in the suit's zipper. She fiddled with it for a bit before finally unsnagging the jersey and matted faux fur.

The mascot removed their mask in relief to reveal a shaggy headed youth underneath.

"Like, thanks Daphne." said the boy. 

"Isn't this the second time this has happened to you?" asked Daphne.

"First time this season!" the boy replied. "...But yeah, it's actually the third time since I started doing this. Haha."

"Shaggy, you gotta be more careful. I don't think anyone wants to find the mascot dead of heatstroke and suffocation anytime soon." said Daphne, patting him on the shoulder.

The two began to walk through the hall towards the locker rooms.

"Yeah, sorry. I just had the wildest start to my week." said Shaggy, walking and holding the bobcat mask underneath his arm. "You wouldn't believe the night I had."

"That's for sure. You never go out at night." said Daphne.

"For good reason! But anyway I -" before Shaggy could tell his story, the next bell for class rang. "Aw jeez, I'm late again."

"No worries, just ask the principal for a note since we were part of the rally. I'm sure it's no big deal." said Daphne.

"Yeah, you're probably right." said Shaggy.

Daphne waved goodbye before heading to the girls locker room with Shaggy walking down to the boy's room.

"Didn't even get to tell her the best part."


	3. Chapter 2 - It's a Mystery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Could you do me a favor?

The last bell of school had rang and students who didn't have any after school activities were eager to go home. They poured out of the front doors, some getting on the bus, some leaving with their parents who had come to pick them up, some being the lucky few who had a car of their own. One such lucky teenager was one Fred Jones.

As he hopped in his van, he looked over to see Velma walking out of the school. He pulled the van up to the curb and opened the passenger door. 

"Hey, wanna ride? I was about to head over to the burger place to get some grub." he asked as Velma walked over. "Sure, as long you're paying." she joked before getting in the passenger seat.

The two drove off, headed for the local restaurant. Though it was called Casey's Malt Shop, it was mostly known for its burgers. The quaint little restaurant had been a staple of Coolsville since the 60's. First being owned by Casey SR, before being passed on to his son, Casey JR. To honor his father, JR made sure the keep the classic 60's look of the restaurant with a slightly modern touch. He even had a few carhops on staff.

Fred pulls the van into the parking lot and the pair get out to go inside. The two take a seat at one of the booths and begin to look over the menu. 

"Can I get you anything?" asked a waitress, in a blue and white uniform. She had dark red hair and bright green eyes. Which Fred took immediate notice to.

"Uh, just a water. I haven't really decided on anything yet. Uh...Velma! Did you want anything?" said Fred, nervously.

"Just a regular strawberry milkshake for now." she said, not looking up from the menu.

"Alright then, a water and strawberry milkshake. I'll have that for you in a sec." said the waitress before flashing a smile and walking back to the kitchen.

Velma puts down her menu and gives Fred a look. "Really Jones?"

"What?" said Fred, trying to play coy.

"Did you really invite me here to help you talk to a waitress?" asked Velma.

"No." said Fred. "I mean, I don't know. Maybe."

"Well what's her name? I don't think I've seen her around at school." said Velma.

"I don't know." said Fred.

"How do you not know her name when you look like the milkshake that's about to be at this table in the next few minutes?" Velma said, hoping to rile Fred up a bit.

"Hey, come on now. I mean. I've tried to talk to her before. I've seen her around at school and I've seen her here when I come here with my parents. But every time I try to look at her name tag, I get distracted by her eyes." Fred explained, tapping a finger rhythmically on the table. "Also you're one to talk. Remember this morning?"

"Can it Jones. That's different." said Velma, shooting him a much sharper look. Her vaguely threatening aura was almost enough to make Fred gulp. He knew when he was beat.

The waitress returned, placing down a glass of water and milkshake.

"Here you go. You guys decide on what you want?" said the waitress.

"Yeah." said Velma before eyeing the waitress's name tag. "Sally, was it? I think I'll just have a cheeseburger, well done and fries. What about you Fred?"

"Uh, I think...I think I'll have the same." said Fred, trying to hide his nervousness.

"Alrighty, we'll have that right out. Let me know if there is anything else I can get you." said Sally before heading back to the kitchen again.

"Well, now you know her name at least." Velma said smugly before taking a sip of her shake.

Outside the restaurant, Shaggy pulled up on a ten speed with a basket in the front. He locked his bike up before heading inside. He walked up to the counter to greet Sally, who was handling the register while her coworker went to the bathroom. 

"Hey Shaggy, what's up?" said Sally.

"Hey Sally. I called my uncle before I left school, I asked him to leave an order for me to pick up."

Sally nodded and directed one of the other waitresses to go look for the order in the back. A few seconds later they came back out with a big bag holding several containers of food and a drink tray.

"Okay, we got 20 chicken nuggets, 2 double cheeseburgers with everything on them, a large order of fries, one vanilla malt, a large Cool Pop and a one side Cobb salad." said the waiter.

"Jeez Shaggy, you planning on having all that by yourself?" said Sally, half joking.

"No. I mean, most of it's for me, but it's a whole thing." said Shaggy. He sounded as if he was hiding something, but Sally didn't notice.

"If you say so. I'll let Mr. Rogers know you got your order." said Sally. "Talk to you later. And be careful not to spill that riding home."

Shaggy nodded and headed back out.

Over at their table, Fred looked over to see Shaggy talking to Sally.

"That kid is kind of weird." said Velma, already halfway through her shake.

"That kid knows Sally." said Fred, getting one of his big ideas before getting up from the table and walking to the counter.

"Uh hi." said Fred.

"Hey, what can I do for you?" said Sally with a smile.

"Uh." Fred started nervously, wondering what he came up here for again. "Um, would it be okay if we got our order to go? We're doing a study group for uh...thing and uh, we gotta pick some books up from the library before it uh...closes."

"Alright then. Though you might want to hurry. It's only another three hours before the Coolsville library closes." she joked.

Fred laughed nervously as Sally told her coworker to pack his and Velma's food as a to go order. 

"Cool. Uh, see you later." said Fred.

Sally gave a wave of her fingers as Fred took the food and started walking to the door. It took a second for Velma to realize where Fred was going before she hurriedly finished her shake and got up to follow him.

"Jones, what the heck?" said Velma walking behind Fred as they went to the car.  
"Well I just thought our food might be better to go. You know." said Fred.

"And?" asked Velma, impatiently.

"Well I thought we could give that Shaggy guy a ride. He has a lot of food. There's plenty of room in the van for him and the bike. You know it pays to be a good Samaritan, Velma." said Fred.

"Sure, that's why we're doing this." said Velma.

"Look, if you help me with this, I promise to help you with your thing." said Fred.

Velma rolled her eyes and let out a sigh. "Fine. But you gotta work on my math homework."

"But you love math." said Fred, confused.

"Yes, but I also love having free time to work on my personal projects and I get just enough homework to cut into it." Velma explained.

"Deal!" said Fred enthusiastically as he got into the van. 

Velma sighed again before getting in as well. Fred started the car and looked around for Shaggy who was riding his bike up the road. Fred drove up beside him and slowed down just enough for Velma to roll down her window so they could talk to him.

"Hey, do you need a ride?" said Fred.

"Huh?" said Shaggy. "Uh, yeah I guess."

"Stop for a sec and we'll let you get in." said Fred.

A few minutes later, Shaggy was sitting in the back of the van, holding on to his large order of food. His bike sat on the floor in the very back of the van along with his backpack.

"You're Shaggy right?" said Fred. "I'm Fred. Fred Jones. This is Velma." 

"Nice to meet you." said Shaggy. "And yeah, everyone calls me Shaggy on the account of the hair."

"What's with all the food?" asked Velma, wondering if she'd regret the answer.

"Oh, uh. Most of its' for me, but I just got a dog. Kind of. My parents haven't decided if we can keep him yet. He loves chicken, so I got him a bunch of chicken nuggets cause Casey JR. is my uncle." explained Shaggy.

"That can't be healthy for a dog." said Velma.

"Well the pet store is far enough that I'd get really tired riding up there on my bike and my uncle gives me a huge discount anyway." said Shaggy.

"Makes sense." said Freddy. "So Shaggy, you're friends with Sally, right? The waitress?" he asked, getting straight to the point.

"Kind of. We have a couple classes together." said Shaggy. "Why do you ask?"

"Uh well it's just...uh." started Fred.

"Oh for Pete's sake!" interrupted Velma. "He has a thing for her."

"Velma!" said Fred, trying his best not to jump out of his skin and lose control of the wheel.

"Ah, haha. I see how it is." said Shaggy. "No man, it's cool. She's super nice. I can see why you like her."

"Oh, well uh, thanks." said Fred.

"I don't know if I can help, but I can try. You gotta do me a favor though." said Shaggy.

"Alright, but this is the last favor I'm doing for someone today." said Fred.

"My dog has been trying to get out to the woods. He had a collar when we found him, but there wasn't any info on his owner. I think maybe he's trying to find something he lost in the woods." explained Shaggy. "I was wondering if you guys could help me search out there. I got some flashlights and stuff at my place. I figured the more eyes, the better. Plus I'm not good in the woods after dark." said Shaggy. "Not that I'm scared of the dark or anything, the woods are just creepy, you know?"

"Alright." said Fred. "Just me know where to turn and we'll stop by your place to eat." 

Moments later, the two arrived at the modest Roger's household. It was a brick laid house in the middle of Elm street. Two stories with a driveway and garage. One car was parked in the driveway while the other was in the garage.

"Can you park by the curb? My mom's a nurse and her shift is gonna start soon. Also we gotta take our shoes off in the house." said Shaggy.

Fred did as told and parked the car beside the driveway. After getting their things and going into the living room, they were greeted by Shaggy's toddler sister Maggie.

"Shaggy!" she said, running into him and almost making him drop the food. 

"Hey Maggs. I love you too, but like I gotta put this food down." said Shaggy.

"Cute kid." said Velma.

Maggie's hair was like Shaggy's except a bit more put together cause their mom wanted her to look nice. She had just gotten back from kindergarten, but was already in her pajamas. 

As the group put down their stuff, Shaggy's mom walked in the room. She had long brown hair and was an inch or show shorter than Shaggy. She wore dark green scrubs and had her ID around her neck. 

"Good, you're here! I was just about to call cause I'm about to go on my shift. The dog is still out back, your father said he was gonna look into finding his owner later." said Mrs. Rogers before noticing Fred and Velma. "Oh, you have friends over."

"Yeah. Mom, this is Fred and Velma. Fred gave me a ride from uncle Casey's restaurant." Shaggy explained.

"Well it's nice to see Shaggy hanging out with people. Just remember, they can't stay over too later, okay?" said Mrs. Rogers.

"I know mom." said Shaggy.

Mrs Rogers, looked around for her purse before grabbing it off of the nearby kitchen counter and giving Shaggy a kiss on the cheek goodbye.

"Make sure Maggie is in bed by 8 and be sure to walk the dog if you want to convince your dad and I to let you keep him." she said before walking out the front door.

"Your mom seems cool." said Velma. 

"Yeah, she's great." said Shaggy. You guys can go ahead and start eating if you want. I'm gonna go ahead and get my dog ready."

"Doggy!" said Maggie, excited.

"Oh shoot. I gotta get someone to watch my sister." said Shaggy.

"Can you take her with you?" asked Fred.

"Uh, dude. I can't take my 5 year old sister out to the woods after dark." said Shaggy.

"You're making us do it." said Velma.

"Totally different." said Shaggy.

The group thought for a minute before Velma got an idea.

"Uh, I might know someone. Go ahead and get your dog. If they say yes we can eat and go." said Velma.

A few moments later, Shaggy was out back where a now clean Great Dane sat surprisingly patiently. Shaggy approached the dog with the box full of chicken nuggets. As the smell hit his snout, the dog's ear shot up and he ran over to Shaggy, wagging his tail.

"Hey buddy. I know you like chicken so I got something for ya. At least till mom and dad get you some real dog food." Shaggy sat down the container and the dog started to chow down. "You know if we keep you, I get to name you. I don't know what though. I guess your initials are SD cause of your collar."

Shaggy happily pet the dog while he ate. After a few seconds the dog looked up from it's meal and began to lick Shaggy.

"Hahaha. Okay. Okay! I love you too!" he said trying to get the dog to calm down. "Good boy."

Back in the house, Velma sat at the itching table while looking at something on her phone having finished her food. Fred and Maggie watched her as Fred was still eating his food and Maggie was making her way into a pudding cup.

"So who are you texting?" asked Fred.

"I'm on Friendbook. I just gotta ask someone something." said Velma before getting a notification.

"How are you gonna convince someone to babysit for you anyway?" asked Fred. "Not like either of us are really liquid right now."

"What's liquid?" asked Maggie.

"Water." said Velma, not bothering to look up from her phone.

"It means we don't have a lot of money, little Maggie." said Fred. "Which again, how are you gonna get someone to babysit Shaggy's sister while we go out to the woods?"

"Don't worry about it. They said it's fine. They wanted to try babysitting in the summer so they don't mind doing it for free. I just have to help them with something later. They'll be here soon." explained Velma.

"If you say so." said Fred.

A few minutes later, Shaggy came back to the house with the dog on a leash that his father had bought in order to follow to local leash laws. 

"Alright, I'm ready when you guys are." said Shaggy.

"Oh! I love your dog! said Fred enthusiastically. He got up and walked over to pet the dog who simply wagged his tail in appreciation. "What's his name?"

"He doesn't have one yet. The tag on his collar had the initials SD, but I don't know what to make of it." said Shaggy. "Hey Velma, did you figure something out for Maggy?"

Ask Shaggy asked, the doorbell rang. 

"I'll get it!" said Velma, quickly getting out of her seat and going to the door. 

A few seconds later, Velma walked back to the kitchen with Daphne Blake behind her.

"Shaggy, this is Daphne. Daphne, this is Shaggy and that is his baby sister Maggie." said Velma.

"We know each other from cheer actually. Shaggy's the bobcat." said Daphne. 

"Huh. Good to know." said Fred. 

"Aw jeez, I hope this is okay." said Shaggy. "I don't really have any money on me. I already owe my uncle and my parents aren't home."

"No no, it's totally fine. I need the experience. Besides, I got a little pocket change in case we need to order a pizza or something." said Daphne.

"Uh, I don't think Maggie can have pizza yet, she's like four." said Shaggy.

"Oh. Well you know. I'll figure something out." said Daphne.

"Okay. Well we gotta go, right Fred?" said Velma.

"Uh yeah. I guess we do." said Fred, getting up from the table too. "See you later little dude." he said, giving Maggie a fist bump goodbye.

"Okay. I don't know if Velma told you, but Maggie has to go to bed by 8. I don't think we'll be out that long, but just in case. Also her food is in the fridge if you need it and no matter what she says, she can't have ice cream." Shaggy gave Daphne a few more instructions, which she memorized as best she could before the trio plus the dog headed out to Fred's car.

Outside was a rather expensive looking dark purple sedan. 

"Whoa. Is that Daphne's car?" asked Shaggy. "Are her parents loaded or something?"

"She's a Blake actually." said Fred.

"Weird, she never said anything about that. Better not tell my uncle if she goes by the restaurant. He hates the Blakes." said Shaggy. "She seems cool though."

The trio plus dog got into the van and pulled off as Daphne and Maggie wave from the living room window.

Not too long later, the trio arrive at the forest on the edge of the Coolsville city line.

Fred turns off of the car and the three get out with Shaggy carefully guiding out the dog.

"So what exactly is it we're supposed to be looking for?" asked Velma.

"I don't know. My house isn't too far from here and my dad said it looked like my dog had been running through the woods. So I just put two and two together since he kept trying to get me to take him somewhere." said Shaggy.

"Okay. I guess we can look around for a little bit." said Fred. "Lead the way."

Shaggy took point with the dog sniffing the ground in front of him. 

"Thanks again for helping me with this. I know this isn't the preferred way in or out of town for a reason. I feel safer with someone helping me out, you know?" said Shaggy.

"No problem, glad we could help." said Fred.

The three walked around for a bit before the dog's nose caught something in the air. He lifted his head and his ears stood straight up as he sniffed around. 

"Oh I think he found something!" said Shaggy, being pulled into the woods by the dog.

Fred followed behind but turned to notice Velma who was walking slowly and typing on her phone.

"You coming?" asked Fred.

"Huh? Yeah. Uh, be right there." said Velma.

Fred shook his head and followed Shaggy leaving Velma to her business.

Back at the house Maggie was sitting in front of the family television watching cartoons and eating candy. Daphne sat on the couch on her phone replying to a Freindbook message from Velma. 

"Hey! Yeah, everything is all good here. Don't tell Shaggy, but I gave Maggie a little candy. She's just sitting here watching cartoons, so I think she'll be fine." texted Daphne.

"Cool. We're still just looking around. I don't know if we'll find anything. Thanks again for helping though." Velma texted back.

"No problem <3" Daphne texted. "I hope to see you at the party Friday too. :)"

Back in the woods Velma got wide eyed and stopped in her tracks. She thought for a moment before replying.

"Yeah. Cool." she texted back.

Velma waited for a moment for Daphne to say something back. After a moment of silence she let out a sigh and almost put her phone away before getting another notification. She hurriedly unlocked her phone to check the new message.

"Uh hey. Can you ask Shaggy if his sister is potty trained??? I think we might have a problem!" texted Daphne.

Velma chuckled a bit before replying back. "Idk. I'll ask real quick." 

Velma looked up from her phone before noticing how far ahead of her Fred and Shaggy were.

"Hey guys, wait up!" she said, rushing to catch up with them.

The group ended up coming to a spot in the woods near the city limits sign. They noticed tire tracks out on the street.

Shaggy, pulled out his flashlight and shined it in the direction of the track marks.

"Looks like someone had an accident." said Velma.

"Must have been someone out of town. Pretty much no one leaves town this way. Especially the way it was raining last night." said Fred.

The dog brushed against Shaggy before turning towards the woods and barking. Shaggy shined his flashlight down into the woods to notice a car haphazardly parked near one of the trees.

"Jinkies." said Velma.

"And you make fun of me for saying hip." said Fred as the group carefully approached the car.

"Uh, maybe we should call my parents. This is getting kind of weird." said Shaggy.

"Wouldn't you get in trouble for ditching out on your sister?" said Velma. "Not that I don't agree, but I'd rather not get grounded over an abandoned vehicle."

"I wouldn't call it ditching, but you're probably right." said Shaggy.

The driver's door was slightly ajar. Shaggy shined his flashlight inside, but there didn't seem to be anything inside. 

"What do you think happened to the driver?" asked Shaggy.

"I don't know. Maybe it he's looking for the dog." said Fred. "Does he smell anything else?"

The dog sniffed around the car before turning his head again. He looked determined but also a little scared. He shook a little in the soft breeze.

"It's okay boy. Take your time." said Shaggy, giving the dog a reassuring pet.

They continued to walk, minding their surroundings, just in case there was something more waiting for them than an abandoned vehicle.

Shaggy shined the flashlight on the ground with the others using their phones. They walk around for a bit before the dog stops and sniffs at a particular spot. Shaggy shined his light and his eyes widened as he noticed a streak of blood and the dog started whimpering. 

"Uh! Guys!" he said stammering a bit. "Look over here."

Fred and Velma walked next to Shaggy and looked down to see the blood on the dead leaves covering the ground.

"Whoa. Oh okay. We should probably leave." said Fred.

"It's dry, but it looks recent." said Velma, finding herself curious.

"Yeah, recent enough that I don't want to find out whatever made it." said Shaggy.

"Could have been something an animal had taken to feed on." suggested Velma.

"An animal?" said Shaggy. "Uh, like what?"

"Beats me. Not my field of study." said Velma.

"In any case, we should still go. It's only gonna get darker and animal or not we should get back to Shaggy's house." said Fred.

The others nodded and began to walk back the way they came. A quiet low growl sound caught Shaggy and the dog's ears as they walked away.

"You guys hear that?" asked Shaggy.

"Hear what?" asked Velma.

"Uh, never mind. Let's just go before my mom calls home to ask about Maggie." 

Shaggy chalks up the sound he heard to the breeze and the group make their way back to Fred's van.

None notice the gleam of a pair of eyes on a tall figure watching them from deep in the woods.


	4. Chapter 3 - Study Group

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Looks like Daphne is the only one who remembered Spirit week. Something seems to be on the others' minds.

Chapter 3 - Study Group

The following morning at Coolsville high, Shaggy walked along with the crowd of students arriving for class. He looks up at the top of the stairs to notice Velma and Fred standing outside.

"Yo, Shaggy." called Fred, waving him over. Shaggy walked with them inside and the three gathered near Fred and Velma's lockers.

"Hey, so you doing okay?" asked Fred.

"Yeah? Kind of. I mean, that was weird right?!" said Shaggy trying to keep his voice down. "I mean, like what do we do?"

"I don't know. Maybe the driver was okay." said Velma.

"Yeah, but like, that was a trail of blood. What if someone...you know." Shaggy suggested, gulping as his mind assumed the worst case scenario.

"Wouldn't the police have been involved by now?" said Fred. "I mean that car looks like it's been out there for a couple of days now."

"Shaggy, was there anything else you noticed about your dog that might tell us something about what happened?" asked Velma.

"No. I mean, I don't know. It was raining when I found him. He was scared and he has this plastic bad with a folder in his mouth." said Shaggy.

"Shaggy, I'm pretty sure that's called evidence." said Velma.

"Well how was I supposed to know!" said Shaggy. "I put it in my room. I haven't even looked at it yet cause I pretty much forgot about it."

"In any case, maybe we should wait before telling anyone." said Velma.

"What? Not to sound like a narc, but shouldn't telling an adult be the first thing we do?" asked Fred.

"Maybe, but think about it. Right now Shaggy has the only clue to what might have happened with that car and his dog's previous owner. If that folder is evidence, then guess what else is?" said Velma. 

"Oh no, my dog!" said Shaggy. "You don't think the police would take him, would you?"

"More likely they'd turn him over to animal control." said Velma. "But either way, we should at least get a look at what's in that folder. Carefully. If it is important, we don't want to contaminate anything more than it probably already has been." 

"Alright then. Shaggy, are you fine if we meet back at your place again after school?" asked Fred. "I can tell my folks I'm with a study group or something."

"What are you guys studying for?" said someone behind the trio, causing them to almost jump out of their skin. They turned to see Daphne standing in front of them.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to spook you guys. I just have a test coming up and I was trying to find someone to help me with it." said Daphne. She wore a purple pajamas and slippers. The others looked slightly confused for a second before looking around and realizing they were some of the only kids not dressed for Pajama day. The first dress up day of Spirit week. Fred, Velma and Shaggy each thought to themselves that the events in the woods must have made them forget. 

"Uh, yeah. No problem." said Fred. "We were uh, just gonna meet up at Shaggy's place after school." 

"Oh cool. Are you guys okay if I join you?" asked Daphne. "I haven't been part of a study group before. Well not a real one. Sometimes me and the girls from cheer-leading would tell our parents that we're studying, but it's just an excuse to get together and hang out since most of out grades are pretty good anyway."

Daphne hoped she wasn't being awkward as she explained her situation. Though she had no way of knowing the others were trying to act natural.

"Sure." said Fred as Velma gave him a confused look for a second. 

"Cool," said Daphne. "I don't have practice today, so I'll meet be ready after school."

The bell rings for home room and the group disperses. Velma and Fred follow Daphne to Mrs. Fawcett's room while Shaggy goes to his class.

After entering the room, Fred, Velma and Daphne took their usual seats as Mrs. Fawcett greeted the class. She wore a long purple robe with glow in the dark stars. Her long sleep cap had a fuzzy ball on the end, which one would be right to assume glowed in the dark as well.

"Good morning class. I see most of you were able to bring some school spirit with you today." said Mrs. Fawcett "Remember, just because you're in your jammies, doesn't mean you get to sleep in class." 

As she continued to make announcements, Velma and Fred texted on another, hiding their phones under their desks. 

"What do we do about Daphne?" Velma asked.

"Just roll with it, I guess. It's not like it's a big deal." said Fred.

"I mean!!!" replied Velma. "I guess!!! But it's not like we can just tell her about the stuff in the woods. Or about the folder."

"I'll figure something out." Fred reassured her. "Don't worry."

The two continued to message one another back and forth and don't notice Daphne keeping an eye on them.

The bell rings, startling all three of them before they gather their things to leave.

Fred and Velma head off to their next class as Daphne walks off in the opposite direction. She looks back at them a couple of times wondering what the two are up to. She had noticed their strange behavior since yesterday.

She shrugged it off for now and headed to her biology class which she shared with Shaggy. She usually sat in the front of the room, but today she decided to sit next to Shaggy who looked over in surprise. 

"Hey." said Shaggy a bit confused.

"Hey. What's up." said Daphne, setting down her books. "Is it cool if I sit here?" 

"Uh yeah. No problem." said Shaggy.

They both sat in awkward silence for a moment as class began before Daphne broke it by asking Shaggy an unexpected question.

"Is Velma like, mad at me?" she said, surprising Shaggy.

"Huh?" he replied, confused.

"Sorry. I just mean, yesterday we talked a little bit before I looked after your sister and everything seemed cool. But I invited her to my party this Friday and she seemed like she didn't want to go." Daphne explained, trying to keep a voice at a low enough volume as to not aggravate their teacher.

"Uh. I don't think there's a problem." said Shaggy. "I mean, we never talked before yesterday, but she was happy to call you over and she was texting you the whole time we were out at the woods." 

"The woods? Velma said you guys had to go pick something up for you study group." Daphne said, now wondering what else might be going on.

"Huh? Oh! Uh, yeah. We had to go get some samples for uh...for Science class. I was Fred with something, so they were helping me figure out something I could do for a science project. You know, since it's not my best subject." said Shaggy.

"I don't think we're gonna do any projects till spring though." said Daphne.

"You can never get started to early." said Shaggy. "Uh, at least that's what Velma said."

The two are interrupted by their teacher clearing his throat. 

They both quiet down and proceed to follow along with the lesson by pulling out their textbooks. Shaggy uses his as a cover while he leans over to talk to Daphne.

"But like. Velma's just fine." he tells Daphne. "If you ask me, I don't think there's anything to worry about."

Daphne felt unsure, but thankful that Shaggy was trying to reassure her that nothing was wrong. The rest of the class went by pretty quickly and the two walked out of class together once the bell rang.

"Hey Shaggy? I just wanted to say thanks." said Daphne.

"What for?" said Shaggy.

"Well. I guess just, it's hard to make friends sometimes." said Daphne as the two walked through the hall. "You've been nice to me ever since you've been the Bobcat. Most guys are usually pretty obvious about weird to me." she explained.

"Don't you have like tons of friends though?" asked Shaggy. "I mean you're on the cheer squad, you're good in school and like you're a Blake. A Blake Blake."

"Well. That's not all it's cracked up to be when you family doesn't exactly have the best history with the town." said Daphne, clutching her books to her chest. "Anyway. Thanks. I'll see you after school okay?"

"Yeah. No problem." said Shaggy giving her more reassurance with a friendly smile.

A couple classes later, it was lunch time and Shaggy made his way to the cafeteria. As he prepared to get in line, Fred walked up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey, Shaggy." said Fred looking overly enthusiastic. 

"Hey." said Shaggy, what had Fred so happy, till he turned his head to see Sally close by. "Oh okay. We're doing this now."

"I mean, you don't have to." said Fred. "It would be awesome, but like you know. It's whatever."

Shaggy smirked and shook his head before gesturing for Fred to follow him. Shaggy got a bunch of chicken nuggets and a soda. He had a craving since he got them as a snack for the dog the day before. Fred brought his lunch, but stayed by Shaggy. 

Shaggy didn't really have a preferred place to sit in the cafeteria but he was usually welcome wherever unless it was at a table occupied by some clique. Other than his noticeable appetite, he didn't draw much attention from the other students. Today Shaggy made his way to a table occupied by Sally and her two friends. A shorter girl with blonde hair and pale skin, wearing a blue shirt and black pants. Along with a girl who's orange red hair complimented her darker skin. She wore a black blouse and jeans. Almost the reverse of the other girl's clothes.

"Hey is it cool if we sit here?" asked Shaggy.

"Sure." said Sally, before giving a wave to Fred.

Shaggy and Fred sat down across from the trio. Fred was trying not to be obviously nervous.

"Who's your friend?" asked the redhead girl, looking over to Fred.

"This is Fred. Fred, you know Sally. This is Luna and Dusk." said Shaggy, introducing everyone.

"Oh cool. Are those your real names?" asked Fred.

"Is yours Fred?" asked Dusk plainly. 

"Uh yeah." Fred replied, awkwardly thinking he shouldn't have asked the question. 

"So." said Shaggy. "Anyone got stuff going on or?"

"We got a gig at a party this Friday." said Luna.

"Daphne's party?" said Shaggy.

"Yeah. The cheer girl. She's pretty cool for a cheer girl. Her parents agreed to pay for us to do a set at their place." said Dusk. "It's a gig and free food, so we said yes."

"Oh you guys have a band?" asked Fred. "That's awesome."

"It's no big deal. We're just local right now." Sally chimed in. "We're called the Hex Girls."

"That's so cool." said Fred, with a goofy dreamily look on his face. 

Dusk and Luna rolled their eyes as it seemed Sally was happy to return the gaze.

"Uh so anyway, we were going to the party to. We were gonna help Daphne setup. Maybe if we get there early enough we could help you guys set up?" Shaggy suggested between bites of his lunch. He made sure to swallow his food before talking at least. Helping Fred was one thing, but food came first.

"Oh sure. We don't have that much equipment, but help would be great." said Sally.

"Looks like we have our own roadies now." Luna said with a laugh.

Fred was shocked at how easily Shaggy got along with the girls, when it took all he had to not stammer over his own tongue when talking to Sally. Helping with her band would be the perfect chance for him to talk to her more. He'd have to thank Shaggy later. 

However before he could have another thought, a big brick of a teen in a green jacket, white shirt and jeans sat down with a thud next to Sally and the Hex Girls.

"Sup Jones?" said one Reginald "Red" Herrington.

"Hey Red..." Fred said trying to hide the ire in his voice. 

Red was the kind of guy who didn't have a filter. He was bigger and taller than Fred and though he had lightened up in the last few years, he was sort of Fred's bully. At the very least, he still busted Fred's chops every now and again.

"Oh you two know each other." said Sally. 

"Yeah. Jones and I go way back." said Red. 

"Fred and Shaggy were just telling us how they are helping with the party this weekend. They were gonna help us with our stuff since they're gonna be there early to set up anyway."

"Dope. I was gonna help out too." said Red. "Hopefully Jones can keep up, so I won't be doing all the heavy lifting." he joked before playfully jabbing Fred in the shoulder.

Fred rubbed his shoulder and let it slide for Sally's sake.

"Aha. Yeah. It'll be...nice to work with you." said Fred, trying to hide his frustration.

Shaggy looked over and noticed Fred had barely eaten his lunch and decided to try to salvage the situation.

"Uh hey Fred. Don't we have to check in with Velma for the thing?" said Shaggy? "You know, with the stuff?"

"Huh? Oh yeah. Uh, we gotta go." said Fred. "We'll see you later. It was nice meeting you two." he said to Dusk and Luna.

"See you around Jones." said Red as Fred and Shaggy got up to leave.

Shaggy put his tray away in a dish bin on top of a trash can and Fred just collected his left overs to take home with him. He looked defeated as the two walked out of the cafeteria.

"Hey man, I'm sorry about all that. That looked super awkward." said Shaggy. 

"No, you're fine." said Fred. "Just like Red Herrington of all people."

"What's his story anyway?" said Shaggy.

"It's nothing. He's just been a jerk for as long as I've known him and we've known each other since kindergarten. He's fine now I guess. He's just a lot to deal with. And this whole situation doesn't help either." Fred explained.

"Hey at least you won't have to worry about it till the Party." said Shaggy. 

Fred shrugged and put the thoughts of Red in the back of his mind as the lunch bell rang and the two went off to class.

The rest of the day went relatively normal and after school ended, Fred waited for the others by his van. Velma was the first to show up, noticing Fred seemed a bit put off.

"What's eating you?" she said as she approached.

"It's nothing." said Fred. "Did you see Shaggy and Daphne?" he asked.

"Here they come now." said Velma as Daphne and Shaggy walked up. Daphne was still in her spirit day PJ's.

"Ready to go when you are." said Daphne. "I probably should have brought a change of clothes, but it's fine!"

The group all hopped in the van and Fred started the car, to drive off to Shaggy's home. When they arrived, his mom was just about to leave for her shift at the hospital. Maggie was excited to see everyone again, especially Daphne.

"Sleepover!" shouted Maggie, upon seeing Daphne in her pajamas.

"Oh, I'm sorry sweetie. This was for a school thing." said Daphne, feeling absolutely horrible about crushing little Maggie's dreams since she looked so adorable. "Maybe next time."

Maggie sighed and let out a simple "Okay." before sitting down at the kitchen table with her head in her hands.

Mrs. Rogers grabbed her stuff and gave Shaggy a kiss on the cheek goodbye before heading out the door.

"You kids enjoy study group!" she said before leaving.

"Alright. I guess we better get started" said Daphne.

"Uh me and Shaggy are gonna be a sec. I gotta help him find something for studying." said Fred. "We'll be right back."

"Wait what?" said Velma, realizing she'd be all alone with Daphne.

Fred had already pushed Shaggy along to go to his room, leaving Daphne and Velma together with Maggie playing with some crayons and paper she had.

In Shaggy's room, the walls were painted forest green. He had various superhero posters around his room, the biggest were posters of Commander Cool and one of the Blue Falcon. He had a wooden dress and night stand next to his modest twin bed. A collection of action figures, comics and cookbooks next to his closet and a tv with a game system hooked up to it sitting on top of the dresser.

"So where is the thing you told us about?" asked Fred.

"It's around here somewhere. I think I put it in my closet." said Shaggy. 

As they looked around, the dog walked into the room.

"Hey boy. I guess mom let you inside." said Shaggy, playfully rubbing the dog's head. "I still gotta think of a name for you, but it's gotta be a good one."

"Shaggy, we gotta focus." said Fred.

"Right. Right." said Shaggy before going over to his closet. He rifled through it for a moment before finding the plastic package with the folder inside.

As Shaggy held it up, the dog seemed to react to it by leaning his head up toward it.

"Should we open it?" asked Shaggy. 

"Yeah, but maybe we should be careful. We don't want to mess it up before we figure out what it is." said Fred, thinking for a moment. An idea suddenly clicked in his head. A mix of something he had sort of learned from Velma and something he had seen in movies. "Do your parents have a vegetable steamer?"

Back in the living room, Velma and Daphne sat next to one another on the couch as Maggie watched cartoons. They were going over some math homework Daphne had been having issues with. Velma was trying her best to keep a bit of space between her and Daphne as they went over the work.

"Sorry again for asking about this. I just figured you'd know better than I would." said Daphne, putting a tuft of hair behind her ear. 

Velma unconsciously stared at Daphne's hand tracing along her ear before she caught herself and looked down at the worksheet. 

"Uh, it's no big deal. We were gonna do science, but this is fine too." she said, clearing her throat. 

Daphne hold back from frowning in sadness. She wondered why Velma had been so distant the past couple of days. They didn't talk as much as they used to, but she remembered how close they used to be in middle school. Velma was different, but she seemed happier now. At least Daphne hoped she was. Whatever was going on, Daphne figured it was better to leave well enough alone and just be friendly. She remembered what Shaggy had told her and started to feel a bit better.

Just as she was having that thought, Shaggy and Fred came rushing through the living room.

"Sorry. Gotta grab something from the kitchen. For the project!" said Fred as his voice trailed off. 

"Oookay." said Daphne. "Well, I think we can finish this before they get back at least."

Velma nodded and the two went back to work.

In the kitchen, Fred and Shaggy searched around till Shaggy managed to find the steamer in a cupboard. 

"Got it!" said Shaggy.

"Awesome." said Fred. "Grab a cup of water and let's get back to the room."  
Shaggy nodded and the two hurried back to his room. A confused Daphne looking up again as the passed by before returning to her studies.

Fred closed the door behind them as Shaggy poured the water in the steamer and plugged it in.

"So what are we gonna do?" he asked, picking up the package and handing it to Fred.

"Okay, so keep in mind I sort of saw this from a movie, but once the steam rises, we should be able to get a good look at whatever is inside of this without potentially messing it up." explained Fred.

After about a minute and a half, the steam started coming out of the open steamer. Fred carefully held the package over it, exposing one of the corners to the steam. It began to loosen a bit and Fred put a finger in the open space. As the seal began to show little droplets of condensation from the steam, Fred carefully pushed along it to open up the package. After a couple minutes he got all the way through and manage to pull out the folder inside. In it were several sheets of what looked like black paper and a roll of undeveloped film.

"Huh." said Fred.

"Is that it?" asked Shaggy.

"I mean I guess. That can't be it right?" Fred questioned, looking to both Shaggy and the dog before looking at the contents of the folder again.

"You have to develop the film in a dark room first." said Daphne's voice coming from the now open door, startling Fred and Shaggy who looked in her direction to see her in the doorway with Velma behind her. "I don't know about the paper though."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY finished this chapter. It's not long, but I've had a lot going on. I probably should have plugged this before, but for the better part of the year I've been trying to collect money to get dental work done because of an infection I have. The last time I got a check up, it was like 800 dollars for the work and probably more now. To help with this I have a Gofundme here ( gf.me/u/vwwqtk ) and a Patreon that I usually use for Pixel art, but I accept anything that would help ( https://www.patreon.com/bobbytriesatlife ) No one is obligated to help, but it would be very appreciated. It would help take a bit of the edge off of trying to save money while working a barely minimum wage job, having bills and raising a dog.
> 
> Oh! I also wrote a lesbian superhero comic a while ago with art from my friend Nia and Rajinder. It's like 3 bucks if you want to check out the color version here. https://gumroad.com/l/YRUA
> 
> Thank all of you for reading and I'll try best to have the next chapter out not too long after Christmas.


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